FLEMING -- The town of Fleming is moving forward with its comprehensive plan, which will be complete once zoning is addressed and a negative State Environmental Quality Review Act approved.

A special meeting was held Wednesday night to expedite a new local law establishing a moratorium on development in the Owasco Lake Watershed, maintaining the status quo as to all present uses in the watershed for a period of three months following the effective date of the adoption of the law.

During that time, no application for a major subdivision, PDD applications, or site plan development approval will be accepted by the town for properties located within the Watershed Region: the current Lakeshore District, and portions of R1, R2 and R3 residential districts, and portions of the agricultural district. The law also states that the moratorium established by this local law can be extended for another three months.

"This meeting is called so we can have this law sent to county planning by July 8," said Gary Searing, town supervisor, "so they can review it by July 17."

The board unanimously resolved to send the law as written to the Cayuga County Planning Board, and they also unanimously voted to hold a public hearing at 7 p.m. July 14, regarding the proposed enactment of this law. As the proposed moratorium is classified by the state as a Type II Action, it has been pre-determined under SEQRA not to impose significant adverse environmental impacts.

Searing said that the addendum to the comprehensive plan had been basically approved by the county, with a few language changes now being addressed by Carrie Ivers of Clark Patterson, an engineering firm with experience in environmental planning for municipalities. Ivers will be present at the public hearing, Searing said.

After the Fourth of July holiday, the town will have a working session and on July 30, a public informational hearing on proposed zoning amendments.

For more, read Thursday's Citizen